Isle of Wight Festival acquired by Live Nation

Live Nation has acquired a majority stake in the Isle of Wight Festival.

IQ reported today (17 March) that John Giddings’ festival has joined Live Nation’s portfolio of 85+ music festivals around the world. The acquisition was reportedly made through LN-Gaiety, Live Nation’s joint venture with Denis Desmond’s Gaiety Investments.

Isle of Wight Festival is Live Nation’s sixth acquisition in 2017 alone.

Live Nation UK chairman Desmond told IQ: “John Giddings and the Solo team have developed the Isle of Wight Festival to be one of the most iconic festival brands in the world. It’s fantastic to be able to add it to our growing and diverse portfolio of festivals.”

Giddings revived Isle of Wight in 2002; he will continue to run the festival alongside Live Nation.

Giddings commented: “After 15 hugely successful and glorious years, we have been looking at how we can elevate and take Isle of Wight Festival to the next level. This partnership with Live Nation will give us the ability to access the company’s scale and talent pool, bringing more acts and a better experience to the UK.”

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